Mr Crean blasted Mr Beazley for failing to show the respect he offered him when their roles were reversed ahead of the 2001 election.

It follows comments by Mr Beazley in The Bulletin magazine in which the current backbencher said if he was party leader he would focus a campaign based on the word "respect".

But Mr Crean said it was Mr Beazley who was failing to show respect to him.

"I don't think he's shown respect ... when I was his deputy I was totally loyal and showed him respect when there were times when I disagreed with his judgment," Mr Crean told Melbourne radio station 3AW.
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"I got behind him. That's what deputies do."

Mr Crean said he would not step aside or declare a spill of the leadership position.

He said if Mr Beazley tried to win back Labor's top job, he would lose.

"If he challenges he won't win," Mr Crean said.

"And he ought to understand that continued destabilisation is not going to hurt me so much as it is going to hurt the party.

"If he wants the party to win, if the others who have been sniping at the heels want the party to win: get behind the united effort and start pumping out the message ... "

Mr Crean, who offered Mr Beazley a seat on Labor's front bench, said he would soon talk to the former leader about his comments.

"He gave me the categoric insurance the last time we spoke that he had no intention of coming back as leader," he said.

"And yet he allows himself to be part of an interview that says he wants to be leader."

Although Mr Beazley tried to play down his chances of becoming Labor leader again, he said he was disappointed not to be prime minister during the current focus on the US and the war on Iraq.

"I guess there's been no period of time when I've been so disappointed at not being prime minister as I have been in the past few months, because I actually see Australia's interests as having been very badly damaged," he said.

The ACTU today reaffirmed its support for Simon Crean and called for an end to speculation about the leadership of the Australian Labor Party.

ACTU president Sharan Burrow said the constant focus on Mr Crean's leadership was drawing the spotlight away from more important debates, such as changes to Medicare.

"We support Simon Crean," Ms Burrow said at the launch of a report on Australia's ageing population.

"He's the elected leader.

"We don't believe this debate should continue. We don't believe we should see a leadership change."

Ms Burrow said Mr Crean, a former ACTU president, understood the needs of working Australians.

"He should be given the support and the air that's necessary to debate the needs of working people in Australia and to frankly influence debate and legislation within the parliament in a way that is to the benefits of all Australians," she said.